After Everything
by winnie6336
Summary: A prologue to Stranger Things 3 & 4. Eleven has returned and the gate is closed, now all she has to do is wait. Wait until Doctor Owens can finish the paperwork and get Eleven out of the cabin and into civilisation. But first Eleven must learn everything there is to know about being a teenager in the 80's. A three part story written before the events of the snowball. Mileven fluff.
1. Part 1

**After Everything...**

 **Part 1**

The Nether. It destroys. It kills. And now it's gone. For good?

* * *

El opened her eyes, staring up at a white ceiling with peeling paint. A swaying light fixture hung above her and as she lifted her head it all became clear.

She stared around the living room of the Byers house, rustling the white sheets on the pull out couch she was sleeping in. In the corner of the room, asleep on the armchair was Max, curled up in a small ball. Next to her was a sleeping Lucas, their hands entwined as he lay on the carpet. In the kitchen was Jonathan and Nancy, their heads resting on the kitchen table, also asleep. They two were holding each others hands, their heads mere millimetres apart. From her position she could see Steve leaning against the wall, his head resting against the maze of vines, eyes shut with a few grunts to tell Eleven he too was asleep. She assumed Hopper was somewhere, and Will, Dustin and Lucas were probably in Will's room, the lucky ones who had managed to grab a bed. In a heap in the corner was Billy, unconscious but his chest was rising to suggest he was alive.

Eleven moved slightly, planning on getting up and pouring herself a drink but as she began to move she felt the aching in her muscles. The aftermath from the night before. Not only that, but she realised that her hand was also holding another's.

She looked down as Mike woke, stirring slowly, grumbling a bit but once he saw Eleven staring down at him in surprise his face lit up.

"El, your awake!" He said stumbling to his feet as Eleven attempted to lift herself up but wincing at the pain that shot through her limbs.

"Mike..."

"No! Don't move, I'll get you some water." Mike said as if reading her mind. He jumped up and tiptoed over to the kitchen, getting a glass down from the cupboard. He filled it with cold water from the tap and opened the fridge, grabbing some bread and setting to work making a sandwich.

"Mike?" Eleven croaked, but stopped when she realised her throat was scratchy and sore.

"No. Don't talk, you haven't drank anything since yesterday morning." Mike said carrying the plate and glass over to her quietly. "Here. We didn't have any eggos."

He smiled at her as she wolfed the food down and gulped the water down in seconds.

"Thank you." Eleven said rubbing her neck and smiling at Mike's delighted face.

"You were amazing! You closed the gate and you killed all those demodogs who attacked the house!" Mike said sitting next to her as she raised her hand to her head, feeling the soft curls once more.

"Joyce washed it out for you. The gel was really sticky, and you had blood in your ears." Mike said wrapping a blanket around Eleven's shoulders.

"Mike?" Eleven said reaching for his hand. Mike knew there were no words for what she had just gone through so he didn't say a word as Eleven rested her head on his shoulder, Mike taking the hand she was holding and wrapping it around her shoulders so they were closer.

"It's ok. I understand."

They sat like that for a few minutes before they both fell asleep, Mike dreaming of demogorgons and three musketeer chocolate bars, Eleven dreaming of eggos and the make shift bed she had made in Mike's basement all those months ago.

 **Hours Later...**

Mike and Eleven woke hours later to the sound of Joyce entering the living room. They jerked awake, Mike backing away from Eleven quickly so that the others would not notice they had just fallen asleep in each others arms. But that was the least of their worries.

Max and Lucas also woke but not fast enough and everyone, including Joyce, witnessed them 'cuddling'.

"Well I'm going to make breakfast." Joyce grumbled walking aimlessly over to the stove.

"Mum, we have no food." Jonathan pointed out.

"Well that can't be true-" Joyce said opening the fridge to double check but jumped back in horror as a large, decomposing, demodog fell out, splattering goo all over the front of Joyce's nightgown.

"Why is there a demogorgon in my fridge!" Joyce shrieked, just as Dustin emerged from Will's room, running at full force in a pair of Will's pyjamas, the buttons almost bursting as Will was a rather small person with very small pyjamas.

"Sorry, sorry!" Dustin said scrabbling to stuff the humongous creature back into the fridge.

"Dustin what are you doing?" Joyce shrieked.

"It's a scientific discovering Mrs Byers, it can't go unnoticed!" Dustin exclaimed.

"Dustin, you cannot keep a creature from another dimension in my fridge!" Joyce said sternly.

"But-"

"No but's! Now Steve and Jonathan, go and take this thing outside and bury it in the yard. In fact, go get Hopper. He'll help you bury it far away enough that no one can trace it back to us." Joyce said stepping over the creature.

"Eleven darling! Your awake!" Joyce said trotting over to Eleven and hugging her, rubbing her back lovingly. "Hopper! Eleven's awake!"

Joyce yelled down the hallway and Hopper came stumbling out of Joyce's room, rubbing his eyes and stretching.

"Hi kid. Good sleep?"

"Yes." Eleven mumbled.

"Good, good." Hopper said walking past the demodog as if it wasn't there.

"Hopper?"

"Yeah." Hopper said pouring himself a cup of coffee and leaning on the kitchen counter.

"The demogorgon?" Joyce said nodding down at the demodog lying under her open fridge.

"Demodog." Dustin added, Hopper giving him a look that said 'shut up'.

"And?" Hopper said raising an eyebrow.

"You, Steve and Jonathan are going to take this thing out of my kitchen and bury it in the garden so I can get to work on cleaning this house!" Joyce said angrily, pointing to the door as Steve and Jonathan wrapped the creature in a blanket and dragged it outside. Hopper followed unhappily.

"Now, everyone. We're going to start cleaning while Nancy goes and get's food for breakfast." Joyce said walking over to the table. "Here's a list of groceries we need."

"I'm going to drive home first if that's ok. Get some clean clothes, wash." Nancy said taking the long shopping list and her coat, leaving the house.

"Nanc!" Mike called before she opened the door. "Pack me a bag with clothes and pyjamas?"

"Sure." Nancy said opening the door and closing it behind her.

"Ok, everyone start taking down the drawings." Joyce said handing them five bin bags and they all split up, taking one room each. Will started on his room, Max on the bathroom, Lucas cleared Jonathan's room and Dustin cleared out the master bedroom. Joyce herself started cleaning the kitchen while Mike cleared the lounge.

"I'll help." Eleven said starting to get up but Mike ran over, pushing her back down.

"No El, your too tired. You sleep and we'll clean." Mike said comfortingly but it only made Eleven fell worse. She was completely useless, confined to a bed while everyone around her worked on cleaning the house, a job she could usually do with little effort and a bloody nose.

So as Mike was searching around for the dust pan he had just gotten out from the cupboard Eleven took it upon her self to pull a little joke. She simply levitated the dust pan behind him so when he turned he saw it floating centimetres from his face and Eleven giggling, her nose bleeding profusely.

"El." Mike said sternly but couldn't help smiling at her, finally having a moment of happiness amongst all the heartbreak.

An hour later and the house was more or less organised, and Nancy had returned with a bag packed of Mike's clothes.

"Thanks!" Mike said grabbing the bag from her hands and racing to the bathroom to have a wash and change before breakfast.

"And here Eleven." Nancy said holding out a simple blue dress with a white ribbon around the waist. "It's my old dress. I thought you might want some fresh clothes."

Eleven took the clothes and with Nancy's help she limped down the hallway and into Will's room to change.

 **Minutes Later...**

Everyone was now seated around the kitchen table, Mike shaking his hair with a towel to dry it after his shower. Joyce and Hopper were setting out plates of sandwich's and various snacks, everyone piling their plates high with food when Nancy turned up, leading Eleven into a seat.

Eleven now had on her dress and a pair of trainers, her hair tied back in a lose ponytail. She looked so happy if a little tired. It had been a hard few days for her, and after her visit to see Kali she hadn't felt like herself. She hadn't felt pretty, or loved, or even stable. But now she felt like herself. In that blue dress with her nice, clean hair it made her feel like she had all those months ago at Mike's house, in her wig and pink dress. She felt normal, well as normal as normal gets.

"El." Mike said making everyone's head turn from Eleven to Mike. "You look really nice."

He ducked his head with shame, forgetting his sister was in the room with him.

"Well maybe you'd like to take a picture kid because she ain't staying here." Hopper said, rolling up his sleeve and sitting down on the only free seat, beside Jonathan and Mike.

"What?" Mike asked, forgetting the reasons in which Hopper had hid Eleven for all that time.

"She isn't safe, and until Doctor Owens gets back to me on how safe Eleven is in Hawkins she's staying hidden, back at the cabin. And if it never gets any better then we may just have to move." Hopper said taking a bite out of his bacon and mayo sandwich.

"What?" Mike said standing up loudly, shocked at what Hopper was suggesting.

"Sit down kid. It's not forever, just for the foreseeable future." Hopper said chewing on his sandwich, hardly caring about Mike's outburst as he has dealt with Eleven who's tantrums can last for several hours.

"Well I'm going to visit." Mike said hacking through his food with his knife.

"No, you aren't." Hopper said with a chuckle.

"Yeah I will. I'll take the back road, down near lovers lake and cut across the woods. It's practically deserted so no one will see me." Mike explained, Hopper very angrily sighing.

"Fine, once a week and only for a short period of time. And you can start tutoring El." Hopper said making tutoring Eleven sound like a punishment for visiting so regularly.

"Deal!" Mike said happily making Hopper roll his eyes with annoyance. Eleven reached her hand under the table, taking Mike's hand. He looked up at her quickly, not expecting her to do that, but smiled at her warmly, squeezing her hand in his.

"Can we visit?" Dustin asked hopefully.

"No." Hopper said and that was the end of that conversation.

 **Hours Later...**

The day had flown by with cleaning, laughter, and plans for Eleven's time at the cabin. She was dreading the return to solitude, but thankful Mike was now allowed to visit occasionally. He had given his word to Hopper that every Saturday he would tutor her for four hours and then two hours on Sunday, after his mum and dad dragged him to church and back.

"You better not mess this up kid, I need El perfectly able to go to school as soon as Doctor Owens gives the word." Hopper said pointing a finger at Mike as he was climbing into his van. Eleven was already in the passenger seat getting ready for the journey home.

"Yes Hopper. You can count on me!" Mike said raising a hand to his forehead in salute and Hopper slammed his door.

"Wait!" Eleven said jumping out of the car as Hopper had just started the engine, about to drive off. She ran down the drive and up to Mike. He stared at her for a second before she kissed his cheek and ran back to the car. Mike stood there staring back at her with a big smile as Hopper scowled at him through the car window.

"Ohhhh! Mike's in loOOOVVE!" Dustin and Lucas chanted from the front porch once Hopper and Eleven were out of sight.

"Shut up." Mike said pushing past them playfully and into the house, still in a daze. It was only Tuesday and Mike could hardly wait for Saturday to come, he was forbidden to come to the cabin even a day early. But that wouldn't stop him from talking to Eleven over the phone. Especially when Hopper went back to work on Thursday.

They all decided to play a game of D&D, to take their minds off the absence of Eleven.

 **Saturday Morning...**

Mike woke early that morning, the sun streaming in through his curtains, his window cracked open so his room smelt of the fresh winter air. It was late November and December was almost upon them, but most notably the Snowball. Mike had been thinking it over since Tuesday night when Eleven left, wondering how he would ask her and most importantly, how he would convince Hopper that one night would not mean eternal doom.

Mike had not seen Eleven since Tuesday, a few phone calls were all that reminded him she was not a figment of his imagination, a vivid hallucination he had dreamed up when he was so desperate to see Eleven. But no, she was real and she was in the woods just outside Hawkins, in a small wooden cabin safe and sound.

"Bye mum!" Mike called out as he sprinted don the stairs, making a great thudding sound with every step.

He was just pulling his jacket on and grabbing his bag, about to open the door and cycle over to the Hopper residence when Karen called him from the kitchen.

"Michael!" She called making Mike slow down and trudge into the kitchen, trying to hold back his excitement. Karen did not know about Eleven's return or anything Mike had been doing the week before and she wanted information before her son ran from the home with a packed bag and his bike. "Where are you going?"

"Dustin's."

"Dustin's busy today. Dentist appointment." Karen said folding her arms and staring at her son with beady eyes.

"How do you know?" Mike said rather rudely.

"Me and your friends mothers have been keeping up to date with each others schedules. Were you kids are we will know. After last weeks stunt I wouldn't put anything past you four."

"You and Joyce share calendars?" Mike said with raised eyebrows.

"No, not Joyce. She's rather strange and we have little in common. No, me and Mrs Sinclair meet for coffee after yoga on Thursday's and I meet with Dustin's mother on Sunday's after church. All three of us go to the same book club and I have Lucas and Dustin's schedules memorised for the next week."

"Well..." Mike said looking down shamefully at his toes before bolting out of the house before Karen to tell him not to.

"Michael!" She yelled stepping onto the front step and calling down the drive to Mike who was already pedalling away as fast as he could, the books in his bag banging against his back with every step.

He cycled as fast as he could down to Hopper's cabin, knocking loudly on the door, kicking his feet on the welcome mat they had recently acquired. It had started raining half way on his way to the woods and he was thoroughly drenched from head to toe, his hair sticking to his forehead and his clothes sticking to his back.

"Mike?" Hopper said as Mike entered the cabin. Eleven and Hopper were at the two seater table eating toast and beans for their breakfast.

"Hi Hops." Mike said pulling his coat off and setting his bag on the sofa.

"Don't call me that." Hopper said getting up and setting his knife and fork down. "I'm heading off to work. Work then chores ok? No eggos before dinner."

"Fine." Eleven grumbled, taking the plates over to the sink to clean later.

After Hopper had closed the front door Mike and Eleven clamoured over to the windows, watching as he walked away to his car which was parked on the edge of the forest. After he was out of sight the two exchanged smiles.

"I missed you Mike." Eleven said softly.

"I missed you too El, I really did think about you every day." Mike said. A few seconds passed of Eleven looking down guiltily at her hands.

"I'm sorry Mike. I should have said something." Eleven said the tears falling down her cheeks. Mike wrapped his arms around her thin arms and pulled her close, wiping her tears away with his sleeve.

"You shouldn't be sorry. You did the right thing. And I looked for you every day after school, for months. I walked through the woods, wondering if maybe you had came back. But you never answered, because you wanted to keep me safe. You wanted to keep us all safe." Mike said comfortingly.

"I saw you Mike. I was in the woods." Eleven said through sobs.

"Don't worry about that anymore. We're both out of the woods now." Mike said although he wasn't referring those woods.


	2. Part 2

**After Everything...**

 **Part 2**

Sometimes the best thing you can do for someone is to let go. Sometimes. Not all the time though.

* * *

Yet another week passed with little change. It was now only two weeks until the Snowball and Mike was yet to invite Eleven, or ask Hopper. Eleven had been home for many days now and although he had only seen her three times it felt like no time had passed from the day she left, it was the same El, his El. But now with her being restricted to the small cabin under Hopper's watchful eye it made it incredibly difficult for Mike to get time to ask her to an event they had been speaking of since the day she left. But today as he arrived at the Hopper residence he said to himself that he would ask Hopper.

So before Hopper had taken his hat and coffee to drive to work Mike cornered him on the porch.

"Hopper! Wait!" Mike said running down the steps pulling his coat closer together to keep out the bitter cold.

"Yeah. What is it kid?" Hopper said placing his hat on his head.

Mike took one deep breath before he asked the question.

"Can Eleven please come to the snowball with me and I know it's risky but please Hopper!" Mike said in one breath, so quickly Hopper could only make out certain words.

"Let me get this straight, you want Eleven to go with you to the snowball?" Hopper asked pinching in between his eyes.

Mike nodded swiftly.

"And you need my permission?" Hopper asked trying to wrap his head around the delicate question.

Another curt nod from Mike.

"Huh." Hopper said blandly, making Mike wait for an answer he wasn't sure he wanted. "I'll get back to you on that."

And with that he left, striding through the forest, twigs breaking under his foot as he trampled through the mossy forest floor.

"Is that a maybe?" Mike yelled after him desperately.

"We'll see." Hopper called without looking back, walking away slowly.

"Shit. Shit shit shit..." Mike mumbled as he jumped the steps to head back into the cabin were El was busy setting out the books and pens for the tutoring. He assumed he had ruined his chances as he had asked before they even knew if it was safe for Eleven to stay in Hawkins, never mind go to a middle school dance.

"Shit?" Eleven asked as Mike entered.

"It's a bad word El." Mike said pulling his coat off and sitting cross legged in front of the roaring fire.

"Oh. Like bitching?" Eleven asked tilting her head slightly.

"Yeah." Mike said breathing into his cupped hands. "Like bitching."

"Oh." Eleven said looking down at the books. She had taken her usual spot on the other side of the coffee table, cross legged like Mike, eagerly folding her arms on the table. "Tutoring?"

"Oh yeah!" Mike said jumping into to action, putting the conversation he had just had to the back of his mind so he could focus on Eleven's tutoring.

It turned out she knew more then he originally thought, not a lot, but more then he expected. She knew how to count up to fifty so teaching her up to one thousand and past was easy enough, she would always getting a little gloomy after passing eleven but that passed by twenty. He also had taught her the two, three and four times tables and they had begun on the fives last Sunday.

She wasn't too bad with English either, learning pretty quickly how to read simple sentences as Hopper had taught her how to sound out every word and she was starting to write, with very small scratchy handwriting. History was easy, like telling her a story which just happened to be non-fiction, and she was excelling in geography. Eleven was so interested in the world she had yet discovered that she hung onto every word Mike said, remembering every country and every fact about the world that he could remember.

The languages were hard but Mike just figured El would never need them so they spent little time on them, assuring Eleven she had it hard enough learning English that French and Spanish should not be her top priority.

But Eleven's favourite subject was science. She didn't care very much for biology or chemistry like Mike, she liked physics. She liked the structure and the stability, that everything was one way, that gravity was unnegotiable. But she did not follow the rules. She could manipulate physics and gravity, mass and weight. She was practically defeating it and she found it fascinating to learn the way the uneducated scientists thought of it, that everything was one way.

 **Hours Later...**

"Hey kids." Hopper said walking through the door, shaking the snow from his hat. He was very late and Mike did not want to leave Eleven alone during the snowstorm that had begun around twelve.

"Hi Hops." Mike said packing away his books to head home.

"Don't call me that." Hopper said taking off his hat and coat, hanging them on the coat rack. "Mike, where do you think your going?"

Mike was about to open the door when Hopper slammed it shut.

"Home? It's almost seven." Mike said reaching again for the handle.

"Yeah..." Hopper laughed. "No. Your staying here tonight, it's far to dangerous out there. I'll call your mum and tell her I caught you riding your bike near the woods and it was too icy to send you home. The winds are crazy out there and it's nearly dark."

Mike sat back on the couch beside Eleven.

"But I've never stayed over before?"

"So?" Hopper said taking a bite of a half eaten eggo on the counter.

"Where will I sleep?" Mike asked.

"On the couch, I'll get you some blankets. Now I'll make that call and then I have to go out. I have extra shifts, patrolling the street to make sure there's no casualties. There's movies and hot cocoa in the cupboards. Help yourself." Hopper said walking into the kitchen were he proceeded to call Mike's mother and explain the 'situation' while Mike and Eleven stared at each other, shocked Hopper would let a boy sleep over.

"Yes Karen. I know he should have been home by now. I'll leave him home as soon as the storm clears tomorrow. I have a pull out couch and I promise he'll be fine. If it'll make you feel better I'll leave him to Joyce's. Ok, bye Karen." Hopper said slamming the phone down. "She gave in when I threatened to send you to Joyce. I think she thinks she'll feed you pot brownies or something."

"She doesn't like Joyce. She doesn't like anyone really, apart from Billy." Mike said giggling with Eleven at the last part.

"Billy?"

"Max's brother. She thinks he's, what's the word? Smokin'!" Mike said quoting his mother and bursting into a fit of laughter with Eleven.

"Oh. Well I'm off, see you too. Bed before twelve, I'll be home around one." Hopper said pulling on a woollen hat and a fur lined jacket over his usual police uniform. Once he was out of the house Mike and Eleven got to work making hot chocolates and putting on a movie to watch, Mike voted 'The Shining', but Eleven insisted on 'The Gremlins' as she had only seen the cover and thought Gizmo was very cute, she was appalled to find out it was a thriller but they watched it anyway. Even though it was not too scary Eleven still jumped every time there was a very intense scene, hiding her face in Mike's chest and when he asked if she wanted to put on another movie she refused, and Mike didn't want to either because he knew the look on her face at the end when they gave Gizmo away would be too adorable, and he was right. There were even some tears from Mike but he hid them well.

 **Hours Later...**

One o'clock in the morning and Hopper walked up to the dimly lit cabin, stepping over the string carefully and approaching the house slowly. When he opened the door he was about to shout out that he was home as he knew they would both be awake but he was surprised to look over at the couch to see Mike, asleep with his feet on the coffee table, his hair in his eyes, and Eleven by his side. His arm was lovingly around her shoulder and she had her arms wrapped around his chest, her curls a mess around her face, both of them soundly asleep.

So Hopper, as silently as he could, crept over to the storage cupboard and pulled out a blanket. He set it carefully over them, trying not to stir them, and crept off to his own room.

 **Sunday Evening...**

Mike was having a very conventional Sunday lunch with his family. He had left Hopper's house around nine, Eleven still asleep on the couch. He cycled home were his mother told him off for riding near the woods, before she dragged him to mass in a very uncomfortable shirt and tie, with a black V-neck sweater.

They were now having a roast dinner with very questionable meat and mushy peas.

"So Michael, I would like to know where you have been the past few days?" Karen said sternly.

"Studying." Mike grumbled slumping over in his seat.

"Sit up boy!" Mrs Wheeler said, Mike's grandmother who was visiting from out of town for dinner. "And answer your mother in a polite manner."

Mrs Wheeler had a very posh voice and was extremely stuck up, spending her weekends with Mike's workaholic grandfather at the country club in the countryside. They lived in a small manor with a maid and cook who arrived at your beck and call. Mike's father very rarely spoke with his parents but seeing as it was December and his parents never visited over Christmas they were having an early visit.

"I was studying 'mother'." Mike said grumpily, mocking his grandmother who seemed to have ignored his snarky remark.

"Really Mike? What were you studying, human anatomy?" Nancy said getting Mike back for the comment he had made a year ago. They had argued about that moment very often and now Mike had a 'girlfriend' of sorts she was determined to never let him live it down.

Mike kicked her swiftly under the table making a big bang as his foot hit the table leg and not Nancy's ankle.

"Michael! How dare you try to attack your sister!" Mr Wheeler exclaimed.

"Oh don't get your bow tie in a twist." Mike mumbled under his breath, loud enough for Nancy to hear, almost choking on her glass of milk, Karen had to hit her back sharply to stop her suffocating.

"Sorry." Nancy spluttered to her grandfather who was staring in disgust at his only grandchildren. Mike, being rude and ignorant, Nancy practically throwing her food around, and Holly who was wailing to her dad that she didn't want to eat her peas.

"I think it's time we head out Richard." Mrs Wheeler said getting up from the table and taking her handbag and coat from the back of the chair.

"Well bye then-" Karen started, still hitting Nancy's back and helping her drink some water to wash it down when the front door slammed shut and Richard and Mary Wheeler were gone.

"Well that was an lovely visit." Ted said picking up two plates and carrying them to the kitchen.

"Yeah, great." Mike said getting up from his seat to do some homework before school tomorrow. The Snowball was in two weeks, then the day after was the first day of winter break. Two weeks off to spend with Eleven and hopefully she would join him at school in the new year. Hopefully.

 **Monday Evening...**

"How's El?" Dustin asked as the five cycled (Technically Max skated) over to Hopper's cabin. Hopper had granted them one visit that evening as he had some good news for everyone that they did not know.

"She's fine, her hair's longer." Mike said simply.

"Ok. You still like her?" Lucas asked.

"Yes- Wait- I mean-" Mike stuttered as the others erupted into fits of laughter.

"It's ok Mike. We know you like her." Max said, Mike glared at her. He still did not except her fully into the group, he did not hate her, but he did hate her acting like she knew him and El so well. She didn't.

"So are we all agreeing to go to the Snowball?" Will asked as the parked their bikes on the edge of Lover's Lake.

"Yeah, Hop said he'd ask Owens if El could go. Maybe that's the good news?" Mike said hopefully.

They theorised the whole way over to the cabin, it took them twice as long to get there as Dustin kept on dragging them behind and Lucas tripped over a fallen branch.

"Pathetic." Max commented once Lucas fell a second time on a pebble that was supposedly 'Much bigger when I tripped!'.

They neared the cabin, smoke coming from the chimney.

"Hey El." Mike said opening the door and pulling his coat off, Eleven standing by the TV, trying to get a better signal by hitting it with her fist.

"Hi Mike. It's not Saturday-" Eleven said, looking up at the others.

"Oh, yeah. Surprise!" Mike said showing off the others as they walked one by one into the room.

"Dustin! Lucas!" Eleven said sprinting forward and wrapping her arms around the necks, dragging them down as she was so much smaller then them.

"Hey El. We missed you too." They laughed.

"Will?" Eleven said reaching a hand out and touching Will's head.

"Yeah, you look a lot better then last time. Happier."

"I am. Happier." Eleven said smiling, then her gaze went over to Max.

"Hi El." Max said smiling.

"Eleven. You call me Eleven." El said walking back to the TV.

"Eleven. Cool." Max said clearly offended but she had promised the others she would be nice, for now. This was a big transition for Eleven and it wasn't good for her to have a new friend forced on her. Over the next few weeks, maybe, they could be friends, but at the moment acquaintances was good enough for Max.

"Hopper said he has some news. You know what it is?" Mike asked Eleven.

"No. He's talking to Doctor Owens. Coffee." Eleven said briefly. "They're having coffee."

"Oh." Mike said, his mind whirling with ideas about what they could be talking about. He would never say anything though, for fear of getting Eleven's hopes up.

"So what were you doing this past year-" Max started. It had been a question she had been wanting to ask since El returned but hadn't had the chance, and the look from Mike told her to shut her mouth and quickly. "Never mind actually..."

Eleven chose to ignore Max as she didn't like her all the much yet, so that conversation was dropped. Mike had promised Hopper he wouldn't press Eleven to talk about the past year until some time had passed and she was ready and that time was not now, especially not for Max to ask the question.

So with thoughts of Hopper's news and Max's question whirling in Eleven's brain, she wondered if the year of solitude could finally be over with word from Doctor Owens.

Just then Hopper burst through the door.

"Hops!" Mike said, surprised.

"Don't call me that." Hopper said taking his hat off as the other all clamoured onto the living room couch, Dustin and Max on the two arms, Lucas, Will and Mike on the seat and Eleven in between Dustin and Mike, nearly sitting on Mike's knee.

"What's the news!" Max spat out impatiently.

"Well Owens said, that we need to wait a year or so," Hopper said slowly. "That El needs to lie low for a while. And, well, here, merry early Christmas kid."

Hopper handed Eleven a brow envelope, she peeled the back off slowly to pull out a piece of paper.

She read through it slowly, Mike had already worked out what it was before she had sounded out the first word.

"J-A-N-E." El said slowly. "H-O-P-P-E-R."

"It's a birth certificate kid. Means you can go to school in the new year." Hopper said, Eleven jumping up suddenly, standing on the table and hugging Hopper around the neck.

"Thank you." She whispered into his ear, the tears streaming down her face.

"Hey kid. Come on, don't make me cry." Hopper said pulling her off him were she rubbed her eyes and smiled proudly down at her birth certificate. "Now this doesn't mean you can go outside yet. After Christmas yes, but not now. A few weeks hidden is the best thing for you right now."

"No Snowball?" Mike asked sadly.

"Maybe kid. Maybe." Hopper said with a smile.

Mike jumped to his feet with the others were they proceeded to dance in a conga around the coffee table were Eleven was standing, cheering and laughing. Hopper covered his ears and ran to his room so he could drone out the noise of rowdy teens with a pillow over his head.

"Jane Hopper." El said staring down happily at the page in her hand, ignoring her crazy friends who were hysterical with happiness.


	3. Chapter 3

**After Everything...**

 **Part 3**

Nothing is ever final, it has simply reached the end of a chapter.

* * *

It was two days before the Snowball and Mike felt nauseous. He was in his room picking out something to wear as he was certain it would take him more then one day to find the perfect combination of a shirt, tie, and shoes.

"Mike? Sweetheart?" Karen said popping her head around the door. "What are you doing?"

"Picking something out for the Snowball." Mike said throwing hangers and clothes all over the bed trying to piece it together.

"But darling you know it's not for two more days?" Karen said tensely, scared Mike would lash out at her like he had been doing recently, the hormones going to his head and making him irritable.

"I know." Mike said standing back and staring at the clothes he had chosen before deciding they weren't compatible and starting again.

"Well maybe we can do this at a time that is not eleven o'clock?" Karen said gently pulling Mike away from clothes.

"But I'm busy tomorrow, I'm going to thee arcade-" Mike said looking desperately back at the clothes on the bed.

"Mike why are you so obsessed with this dance? You've never shown the slightest interest in dances and now your debating on what to wear? What is it honey? It is someone-" Karen said talking as if Mike was mad, crazy, off his head.

"No! Well, yes. But I just want to look, presentable." Mike said searching for the word.

"Ah. So who is this mystery girl."

"Eleven, Jane's her name now." Mike said rather blatantly.

"Oh." Karen said her face going from intrigued to annoyed. "Why?"

"Because she's cool and funny, and she's really pretty and-" Mike said forgetting who he was talking to.

"Yeah yeah, ok. But is she not like really weird? Like shaven head, can't speak much English?" Karen said motioning to her head.

"She has hair now, and her English is much better. And mum you've never officially met her. Only the police report." Mike said throwing his hands by his side.

"Exactly! Police report!" Karen said shaking Mike's shoulders.

"That was by some evil scientists who used her as a lab rat for her whole life!"

"Mike she slept in our basement!" Karen argued, bringing a good point to the conversation.

"Because I made her! I didn't want her to get hurt and she didn't want to ask for help or else they might have hurt her. So really she had no choice in that." Mike said making another very good point. "Mum just because she's different from Pansy Sparks doesn't mean she's bad."

"Pansy Sparks was a family friend! She was your girlfriend-"

"Yeah in second grade! Mum I literally only kissed her cheek once!" Mike exclaimed.

"And what you've done more with Jane?" Karen said crossing her arm.

"No! Yes- I don't want to talk about it." Mike said turning around and folding his clothes angrily, practically hitting them together.

"Mike honey, you can talk to me about anything-" Karen said spinning Mike around by his shoulders.

"Mum I don't want to talk about it!" Mike screamed, turning around as Karen slowly left the room.

"Fine. We won't talk then." She said closing the door quietly behind her. Mike felt a little guilty for shutting his mother out, but you should not talk about your love life with family members. Every Christmas, Easter, and reunion he will be reminded constantly of his first crush because he so stupidly told his mother. But that would not happen because Mike would never speak of him and Eleven. That was private and none of her business. At least that was Mike's point of view.

 **The Next Day...**

"This has to be perfect." Mike said walking up the wooden, slanted, porch steps, one at a time compared to his usual two step at a time as right now he was feeling rather nervous and wasn't going to risk slipping and falling before he (possible) could find out whether Eleven was going to the Snowball, and a broken neck wouldn't bode well with over-protective Hopper who's only wish was for Mike to go away so he could reinforce the rule or no boys until you are thirty-four. But maybe Mike was over thinking it.

"It will be fine. Hopper said he'd think about letting El go." Dustin said following behind.

"Yes but-" Mike said but was interrupted by Eleven who had thrown open the cabin door and was storming out backwards.

"I go! I go!" She was screaming at Hopper who was now at the doorway.

"Mike? Talk some sense into her!" Hopper commanded, only realising Mike was there, Eleven spun around to face him before turning back to Hopper.

"What's wrong?" Mike stuttered.

"Eleven here wants to go to the Snowball but I said I would decide tomorrow." Hopper sighed.

"El, maybe-" Mike began, trying to reason with her as Hopper had said.

"No!" Eleven said holding her head in her hands, shaking slightly. "I can't stay inside!"

"Eleven!" Hopper said sternly.

Then Eleven sunk to the ground, tear streaming down her face.

"I can't stay inside anymore." She whispered as Mike sat beside her, putting on arm around her shoulder and Hopper looking sadly on at the two.

"I ask Owens, and the bastard hasn't responded. I asked him if one night would matter and you know what he said? He said 'I'll see'!" Hopper said to the small group. "El I'll try to get you there but you can't go storming about. You've already had three nosebleeds this morning."

"I feel trapped." Eleven murmured into her knees.

"Your not trapped El. Just until January, then we can all go to school. Just until January." Mike said shaking her playfully.

"I want to leave now!" Eleven cried, almost breaking Mike's heart.

"Mike, take her for a walk." Hopper said rubbing his temple.

"Really?" Mike asked.

"Yeah. Just around Lovers Lake and maybe to get an ice-cream at that place beside the arcade. And two games. Ok El?" Hopper said handing Mike a few dollars to buy the ice-cream.

"Really?" Eleven said in the same tone Mike had used.

"Yeah, now get out of here before I change your mind. And try not to be seen by too many people?" Hopper said.

Eleven jumped up and sprinted into the house emerging a few seconds later with a jacket, hat and shoes. She shoved the shoes on, and pulled on the coat and she sprinted down the steps, Mike and Dustin following behind.

"Bye!" She called out to Hopper who stood on the porch waving good bye, taking a risk but a risk worth taking.

 **Hours Later...**

"Where now?" Eleven said as they emerged from the arcade, licking a chocolate ice-cream happily.

"Home. Hopper said two games and we played five." Mike said licking a vanilla ice-cream.

"I still don't understand why you got vanilla." Dustin joked.

"I like the simple things in life." Mike said sarcastically.

"Yeah but why vanilla? Mint is just as traditional but with more to love!" Dustin said while eating his rocky road.

"Yes but vanilla is always available. In every ice-cream store in Hawkins. And if I was to get mint there are some who don't sell it so then I would be disappointed whereas if I get vanilla I can never be let down." Mike reasoned.

"Your weird man. Well I go to go, see you tomorrow, hopefully." Dustin said eating his last mouthful and running off.

"Bye." Eleven said sadly. Unfortunately after Hopper and Owen's big talk Eleven was still uncertain if she would even be going, this outing was just a way for Hopper to clear his head and it might not be available tomorrow seeing as the surviving lab workers would know she would most likely be at the dance whereas they had no way to know she would be allowed outside today, of all days.

"Come on. One more stop before I take you home." Mike said throwing away his remaining ice-cream along with Eleven's empty cone (she was not a fan of wafer) and took her hand, leading her behind the arcade into a dishevelled alley where a homeless man slept under a cardboard box.

Mike led her through the alley and down an abandoned street until they neared the woods. He ran with her through them for a few minutes, laughing and yelling to each other as Mike challenged her to races. Soon enough though they had reached their final stop.

Eleven screeched to a halt, staring petrified up at the building. It was the lab.

"Look I know you don't want to, but come on. It'll be ok. I promise." Mike said taking her hand gently and bringing her gaze down so they were looking into each other's eyes.

"Promise?" Eleven whispered, the fear of this one building swelling in her stomach.

Mike took her hand and slowly led her over to the fence, lifting up the bottom and crawling under. Once through to the other side he helped pull Eleven through were she stumbled to her feet amongst the shrubbery and weeds.

"This way." Mike said walking with Eleven through a back door near the north side of the building. It was boarded up apart from a small hole at the bottom where they could easily crawly through.

"Mike?" Eleven said backing away as Mike bent down.

"Come on El. It'll help you. But you don't have to, I won't force you if you really don't want to." Mike said looking back at her.

"Help me." Eleven said, mainly talking to her self. She nodded her head quickly and followed Mike into the building.

In her mind she had imagined this place as hell, an evil building that had bad intentions. But upon entering Eleven realised it wasn't that bad. They were standing in a over grown staff room, boxes pouring out of a storage closet on the far wall.

Mike took her hand and from under an armchair he pulled out a flashlight and together they walked down the deserted corridors.

"I come here sometimes. Mainly to check on the gate, seeing as no one else is." Mike said squeezing her hand. "In case something happened. It hasn't, but in case. And when I'm finished with that I usually sort through the record rooms, looking for something. It's mainly papers about unidentified objects that they either didn't have the equipment to analyse or it turned out to be really boring."

They walked further down the halls until Mike led El into a large room lined with shelves. Each shelf had boxes of answers, boxes of truth.

"That was until I found this." Mike said running over to the corner where there was a few pillows and an extra flashlight. It was obviously where Mike would sit when researching.

He produced a file from under the pillow and opened it so Eleven could read over his shoulder, or well listen to him explain so they wouldn't be there for hours.

"It's your record. You couldn't find yours at Hoppers, at least not everything. This is all your files from when you were in here. And look." Mike said pointing at one of the lines. "Your first steps. First words, first tooth. Everything is in here."

Eleven took the file from him and shuffled through the pictures of her as a baby. She had a few hairs, and she was so small. It looked like she was even wearing normal clothes.

"Says in the file that you and Kali lived with a nursemaid until age four. They kept your hair long and gave you proper clothes. Then when Kali, left," Mike said thinking for another word for 'Ran away'. "They shaved your head and took away the proper clothes. And the nursemaid. I think they may have thought they gave you two too much wriggle room."

"This is your past El. No more unanswered questions, answers that even your mother couldn't give you." Mike said staring at her as her eyes filled with tears. "I promise, I'll give you all the answers you want. Always."

Mike took her hands in his, lovingly kissing the back of her hand.

"Thank you Mike." Eleven said suddenly pouncing and wrapping her arms around Mike, throwing the file to the side.

"And Kali isn't really your sister." Mike said dropping it quite suddenly.

"No?" Eleven said sitting back.

"Turns out, from her file, that Doctor Brenner isn't even her father! Her dad is some Russian scientist in a different lab. Sent her here once that place burnt down." Mike explained.

"Good. Good riddance." Eleven said wiping away her tears and smiling.

"Good riddance? The lab? Or Kali?" Mike said confused. She could be talking about either one to be honest, but Mike assumed it was to the lab she was referring as he assumed she thought very highly of Kali, even though she was a ruthless killer out for pointless revenge.

"Both. Mouthbreathers." Eleven said making them both chuckle.

"Yeah, mouthbreathers." Mike said grinning, before Eleven leant forward and kissed him quickly.

 **Next Morning...**

Mike was over at Lucas', pacing around his room anxiously.

"Dude calm down." Lucas said playing with his walk-man.

"Calm down? Calm down!" Mike said staring at his best friend. "How can I calm down! Eleven might be going to the dance tonight, I never thought Hopper would actually let her go, I just tried to keep up the act for a while! She was so excited, I never imagined Hopper would actually let her go!"

"Bro! You want Eleven to go to the dance, correct?" Dustin exclaimed.

"Yes! No. Yes! But I'm not ready! Hopper told me not to get my hopes up!" Mike said, losing his breath now.

"Mike, she might not even go. Your just assuming things." Will said calmly.

"But if she doesn't go she'll be crushed! And I'll miss her! And all Hopper said was 'She MIGHT go'! I mean what the hell man! Do I dress formally, in case she does come, or do I dress casually seeing as I'll be alone all night!" Mike said biting his nails now as he paced.

"Stop pacing. Your making me feel sea sick." Dustin said flopping back onto the bed and dropping his hat on his face to drone out Mike's pacing.

"I need to pace! It helps me de-stress!" Mike argued.

"Mike-"

"What!" Mike yelled.

"Look, if Eleven comes she won't care what your wearing. And you see her every week, why is this any different?" Lucas reasoned.

"Because tonight is a night we have been planning for weeks! Months! Years even!" Mike said throwing his hands into the air. "And now I don't even know if she's going! I'm going to vomit."

"Your not going to vomit. You haven't vomited since second grade when you kissed Pansy Sparks cheek." Lucas said getting up and placing two hands on Mike's shoulders. "Now Mike."

Mike gave him an eager nod.

"Calm down."

Nod.

"Relax."

Nod.

"And remember that if Eleven doesn't show up tonight you can hang out with us and drink weird punch," Mike tried to walk away but Lucas held him back. "And if Eleven does show up, you will dance and kiss and make out and make us all nauseous with how much you two are in love. No go home and get a shower! Either way none of us want to hang out with you when you smell like that!"

Lucas finished that statement by pushing Mike out his bedroom window (thankfully his bedroom was on the ground floor) and Mike stumbled home.

 **Hour Later...**

Mike was now on his way, showered and dressed, to the Snowball. His mother had kept them late as she was aking far too many pictures and now as she pulled up to the school she could hardly hold back her tears as she saw her only son leave for his first school dance.

"Bye mum." Mike said slamming the door before she could comment.

He marched into the hall, a few minutes late but still there before Dustin, who was always late.

"Is El here?" Mike said desperately.

"No. Sorry man. I don't think she's coming." Will said sadly.

"Why?" Mike said, so disappointed he considered chasing after his mother's car and begging to be taken home.

"Maybe Hopper changed his mind. But Hops was over at ours earlier and he never mentioned it." Will said patting Mike's back.

"It's ok. There's always prom." Mike said shuffling his feet and turning very emo once again.

 **Minutes Later...**

As Mike sat, lonely, on a decorated chair, watching his friends dance with various people, Max, some girl from English class, and strangely enough his sister, Mike considered going home. He was so sad and lonely that all he wanted was for Steve to pick him up and take him to KFC for some heart break food when Mike glanced over at the door. And standing there, in a turquoise dress with a pink belt in perfect human form was Eleven. His Eleven.

 **And I think you know what happened after that... If you would like to continue on this story go read Stranger Things 3 & 4, both are written by me so if you like this give it a go. And thank you for reading this story, goodbye!**


End file.
